Fabric is a man-made flexible material composed of a network of artificial or natural fibers. The network of fibers can be made through the process of weaving or knitting. Fabrics can be constructed in a variety of manners in order to achieve various properties. For example, when incorporated into curtains the fabric can be designed in order to be opaque to block outside light. Further, the fabric can be constructed to have a high quality hand feel for items such as a bed comforter which improves the comfort and feel of the comforter. Consumers perceive a fabric that has “good hand” properties as a higher quality product and, thus, it is an important consideration in the consumer's selection of a fabric.
A weave pattern of the fabric includes a plurality of yarn pieces that are parallel to one another and are known as warp yarns. The warp yarns are usually oriented perpendicular to another plurality of parallel yarns known as weft yarns. The warp and weft yarns overlay and underlay one another in particular patterns in order to result in the weave pattern of the fabric. The weave pattern repeats throughout the fabric, and the ends per weave repeat is the number of warp yarns that are present in one repeating pattern.
Fabric that has a twill weave is generally structured so that two or three warp yarns are positioned over a weft yarn. Further, one or two warp yarns are positioned under the respective weft yarn. Fabrics with a twill weave are generally more wrinkle resistant, more durable, and are more resistant to showing soil than fabrics with a plain weave. Additionally, twill weave fabrics have fewer interlacings, are more pliable and have better hand feel than plain weave fabrics. Satin weave fabrics typically have a structure in which interlacings float over four or more yarns. As such, satin weave fabrics usually have floats that may be 3/1, 4/1, 7/1 and 11/1. These types of fabrics are typically flat with a smooth, lustrous surface.
Fabrics are treated during the production process in order to achieve or enhance various properties. For example, the fabric may be sanded, heated, stretched or treated with a chemical agent. Fabric for use in curtains, for instance, can be selected as a 3/1 or 4/1 twill weave fabric with a satin face and may be treated during the production process with an agent for inducing soil release. Such fabrics can have variously designed print patterns imparted thereon and once formed can be sewn together to be used in a curtain of a desired length. Formation of curtains or bed spreads in this manner may be problematic in that a great deal of care and time must be used in order to make the print patterns line up between successive fabric pieces. Additionally, the presence of seam lines in the final product may be undesirable to the end user. It is currently not feasible to produce fabrics in greater widths to alleviate these problems as roller oscillation occurs with fabrics of greater width resulting in uneven surface finishes of the final product.
As such, there remains room for variation and improvement within the art.